1. Technical Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains to solar powered outdoor lighting; more particularly, the present invention pertains to outdoor solar powered decorative lighting systems typically used for outdoor residential decoration during various holiday periods.
2. Description of the Related Art
The decoration of the outside of homes during the Christmas, Hannukah, New Year's period is an American tradition that has been and continues to be maintained. While home holiday decorations started as simple wreaths and garlands, the addition of electric lights to holiday decorations has added a whole new dimension to the types of outdoor decorations available. In some communities residents compete with one another for the best decorations. In still other communities holiday decorating has grown to the point where tour hours are set and outsiders are invited in to view elaborate home holiday decorations. Interestingly, holiday decorating has now grown to the point when many homeowners actually pay for professional decorators to put and take down home holiday decorations.
The growth of holiday decorating activity has now moved beyond the Christmas, Hannukah, New Year's period into other holidays. For example, in recent years, many homeowners are using lighted displays to decorate their homes around the time of Halloween on October 31. Others decorate for the Thanksgiving holiday.
Residential decorations are typically most attractive during the evening hours when lighted decorations can be best seen. To create an effective display of lighted decorations, many home owners must make the proper electrical connections each evening to assure that all of the lights are properly powered. Such effort is often inconvenient for home owners; particularly homeowners in the more Northern parts of the country as the evening hours are when many homeowners are just returning home from work.
Another consideration for homeowners is the rising price of electrical power. Many displays, even those of modest size, can have a noticeable impact on a homeowner's electric bill.
Yet another consideration is that in many parts of the country the weather in late autumn and in winter is characterized by cloudy days without direct sunlight. The impact on the absence of direct sunlight is that most solar panels, particularly crystalline solar panels, require direct sunlight to be effective. In addition, the low power output of crystalline solar panels typically requires an individual solar panel to be associated with each light used in a home holiday display formed of multiple solar powered lights.
Accordingly, there remains a need in the alt for an easy to use outdoor solar powered decorative light system that can used on cloudy days that does not require the use of individual solar panels associated with each light in a decorative outdoor home holiday display.